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Employment Law

Tale of the tape: Beware acting on recorded conversations

02/11/2011

Employers are sometimes tempted to monitor and record employees’ communications and activities. That can backfire. Fact is, there are limits on how employers can monitor employees. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals recently addressed whether an employer may be liable for recording an employee’s private conversation in the workplace.

Jewel-Osco to pay $3.2 million for violations of the ADA

02/11/2011
Jewel-Osco—the conglomerate that owns the Supervalu, American Drug Stores and Jewel Food Stores chains—has agreed to settle an EEOC lawsuit alleging it violated the ADA when it terminated employees after their medical leaves of absence ended.

New civil-union law means employers must make decisions

02/11/2011
Illinois’ new civil-union law—which gives new rights to same-sex and opposite-sex couples—goes into effect on June 1. It says couples united in civil unions are “entitled to the same legal obligations, responsibilities, protections and benefits as are afforded or recognized by the law of Illinois to spouses….”

Alcoholism: a disability; drunkenness: a firing offense

02/11/2011
Alcoholism may be a disability, but that doesn’t mean alcoholic employees can get away with showing up at work a little tipsy.

Want to ‘fire’ your way out of problems with troublesome employees? Think again

02/11/2011

You’ve been dealing with a particularly difficult employee. He’s constantly claiming he’s being discriminated against in one way or another. But then he breaks a rule, and you spot your chance to fire him—of course, following all your internal procedures to the letter. Finally! Now you can rest easy, believing the employee can’t possibly come back and successfully sue you. Guess again.

$1.3 million due from O’Hare contractor that stiffed workers

02/11/2011

If your organization performs work for the federal government, consider this case a warning: A company that provides ground transportation services at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport has settled charges it failed to pay prevailing wages to its employees as required by federal contracting rules.

Warn bosses: Don’t speculate on injury costs

02/11/2011
We all know that employers’ workers’ compensation insurance premiums go up when someone gets hurt at work and starts collecting workers’ comp. But that’s no reason to treat a worker who is returning from an injury any differently than you treat others.

Log customer complaints to back up discipline

02/11/2011

Customers may not always be right, but employers can’t ignore their reasonable and lawful complaints. Remember, you need to document those complaints at the time they happen—especially if it seems like a customer complaint might lead to employee discipline.

Document efforts to help employee improve

02/11/2011
Nothing makes an employer look better in court than clear proof that it tried to help a struggling employee improve her performance. That’s why you should keep track of those efforts.

Offer reasonable ADA accommodations–but you don’t have to provide full-time helper

02/11/2011

It can be devastating when an employee becomes severely disabled in the prime of life, especially if it’s clear the disability means she will never be able to perform her old job without substantial assistance. Well-intentioned, compassionate employers try their best to help. But the tough question is how far they should go to accommodate the disabled employee’s restrictions.